coffee table fix

I love my coffee table. When we moved into this house our old table did not really survive the move. I had it for about 10 years so that was ok. We looked long and hard for a new table that would fit our new space. I think it was about 2 or 3 months before we found one we could agree on. When we had the little man I started looking at baby-proofing options, not really finding any that were going to solve all of our issues, and not make my head hurt with how ugly they were. Our table has 2 sharp corners on each corner, and a glass middle.

There are the rubber edges, but I did not want to glue anything to my table, and I was pretty sure the little man would pick them off; also there is really nothing attractive about them. We would still have the issue with the glass. I thought about temporarily getting a new table, but I really like ours so we would have to figure out somewhere to store it. We decided to use a little brain power and come up with our own solution.

We built a wooden frame out of 2″x4″s about 1″ bigger around than our table and added a plywood top to make a box. I put foam on top then upholstered with batting and some upholstery fabric that I got on clearance for $8.00. There is nicer fabric, but this was fine and I wanted something that I would not care if it got spilt on. The box fits right over the top of our table and can easily be removed when we have parties. I can not tell you the number of moms who have been over here that love it. Now it looks like we have a giant ottoman. Most people do not even know that it was a table before. In a perfect world I would have added some tufting, but I was looking for a quick solution (the little man had bumped his head 3 times in 2 days) and I was worried about little fingers trying to pick off any buttons.

A few tips:

I would recommend putting foam around the sides also, we could not do this because our fabric was not wide enough, but it would make the sides softer.

If not around the sides, make sure your foam extends slightly over the edges so that the edge of the wood does not show.

Use an electric staple gun. I borrowed my Father in Law’s and it made all the difference in the world.

Glue some scraps or ribbon around the unfinished edges inside. I still need to do this, the little man loves to pick at any batting he can see, and we find little fuzz balls where he has been.

Stretch the fabric as tight as you can, they sell upholstery tools for this, I did not have one so I made do with my hands and some pliers.

This has definitely been the best solution for our family. The little man loves to play with his toys or climb on it and we never have to worry about him bumping his head or breaking the glass. I have a piece of furniture that I do not hate to look at, and once there are no more little heads to bump I can have back the coffee table that I love.